Hacking: Experian service for minors provides unlimited credit reports, but no lifetime resolution help

Monday

Dec 3, 2012 at 12:01 AMDec 4, 2012 at 1:34 AM

COLUMBIA - The two credit monitoring services covered by South Carolina's $12 million contract with Experian differ in what's accessible at no cost to enrollees, and whether its help extends beyond the state-paid first year.

By SEANNA ADCOXAssociated Press

COLUMBIA - The two credit monitoring services covered by South Carolina's $12 million contract with Experian differ in what's accessible at no cost to enrollees, and whether its help extends beyond the state-paid first year.Experian began notifying residents last week of the availability of Family Secure, designed to alert parents if a credit file pops up in their child's name. It's offered on top of the ProtectMyID service offered to South Carolina's adult taxpayers.However, despite assurances from state officials, Family Secure doesn't give children under 18 the lifetime of over-the-phone fraud resolution assistance extended to adults, an Experian spokesman said Monday."They are two similar products with differences that are designed for specific purposes and are not often required to be used in the same breach. In this case, they were," said Greg Young.As a response to questions, Gov. Nikki Haley's office asked a nonprofit CEO to contact The Associated Press on Monday evening about its resolution services, which it has offered for free nationwide to identity theft victims of all ages since 1999.Haley negotiated the $12 million flat-fee contract after a hacker stole the electronically sent tax filings of 3.8 million residents and 700,000 businesses in mid-September. Stolen data included the unencrypted Social Security numbers of 1.9 million dependents on parents' returns.Haley has been touting the lifetime benefits of the Experian contract.Under the contract, adults who sign up for ProtectMyID by Jan. 31 can call for advice if they become victims of identity theft, no matter when that occurs."Minors are protected as well for all the same services," Haley told reporters Oct. 30. "What you will have is fraud resolution for life." She's repeatedly referred to it as a lifetime of assistance for victims.Neither Experian service prevents fraud, but rather notifies customers of account openings and other credit changes. The assistance comes in after customers determine a posted change is fraudulent."What you will have is fraud resolution for life, monitoring for a year," Haley said Oct. 30.Revenue Director Jim Etter made the same assurance to senators that day."Are they going to protect all those kids a year or so old?" asked Senate Finance Chairman Hugh Leatherman, R-Florence. "Are all citizens going to be protected forever for $12 million?"Calling Haley's Experian negotiation "quite an accomplishment," Etter replied, "Yes, I can say that without any question at all."But details of Family Secure rolled out Friday contradict that.If accounts are opened in a child's name, the resolution assistance applies only to the year covered by the state. Parents who want to continue the monitoring and resolution service can pay $20 a month, Young said.Residents who want to continue ProtectMyID's daily credit monitoring past the state-covered year can pay $16 monthly.The CEO of California-based Identity Theft Resource Center said Monday evening her nonprofit provides resolution services free to victims nationwide, thanks to government grants and business support. CEO Eva Velasquez said Haley's office initially contacted her center Friday.South Carolina has not committed any money to her group, she said, though she added she's always looking for support to continue operations."We never ask consumers for any money," Velasquez said. "We offer remediation from cradle to grave. We will do the handholding." That includes providing template letters and where to send them.State-contracted attorney Jon Neiditz, a partner in the firm hired for the hacking response, said that Identity Theft's services provide a complement to Family Secure.On the plus side for Family Secure, the enrolling parent can get unlimited, on-demand access to his or her Experian credit report and credit score for the covered year, as well as a "score illustrator" with monthly analysis.Adults in the other service must pay more for that. A single free Experian credit report is available through ProtectMyID, which has been available to adult filers since Haley first announced the breach Oct. 26. Each additional Experian report through ProtectMyID will cost customers $10. Any credit score also costs. However, federal law entitles residents to one free report yearly from each of the three main credit bureaus, including Experian.As of Monday, 906,000 taxpayers had signed up for ProtectMyID. Experian sent out 100,000 notices last week on the availability of Family Secure, Young said. The notices are expected to continue for several weeks.To be eligible for Family Secure, a parent or legal guardian must first enroll in ProtectMyID. A parent can enroll all of his or her children. Only one parent can enroll. The deadline to do so is May 31.

Never miss a story

Choose the plan that's right for you.
Digital access or digital and print delivery.